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Original poster

arghghhghg does anyone have a prepayment meter for gas and elec?

56 replies

pecka · 04/08/2006 14:36

I have F**ked up with my gas and electricity after ongoing battle with powergen that in the end TBH I have been too confused over so have ignored.

Time has run out tho and a warrant has been served so need to pay £400 by monday or have a prepayment meter fitted.

DO NOT have this money so looks like meter will be inevitable?

Is it REALLY expensive?

OP posts:
SpaceCadet · 04/08/2006 14:39

i used to have one years ago, i think they charge slightly more but not an astronomical amount for your power usage, they also take off your debt at a rate of about 5 pounds a week, so to get 10 pounds of power, you would need to put 15 in. there is usually an emergency button which will give you about a fivers worth.

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 14:40

Fight them - tell them what you can afford to pay and stick with that offer.

They tried to do the same with us back in Jan/Feb time - we owed them about £600 (in total) and they wanted us to pay £26.50 a WEEK just on the Gas!!! (we were offering to pay £70 a month on each as that was what we could afford).

It took a 1hr long phone call from me to them (with me refusing to hang up and be called back) for them to agree to it. But the basic gist was

I couldn't afford to pay what they wanted me to pay on prepayment meter - so they'd probably get nothing - I could afford to pay £70 a month (sometimes a bit more) on each.

flutterbee · 04/08/2006 14:40

I believe that it is actually the exact same cost as normal electric but you have to pay for it before you use it so they don't have the hassle and cost of having to chase non payers.

You will need to bare in mind that your debt of £400 will be collected through the meter so your electric will be higher than average.

pecka · 04/08/2006 14:45

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 14:47

pecka - was that the bloke in the normal customer services??? If so demand to speak to someone in the credit department - that's what they did with me after 45 minutes on the phone to them - and in just 15 minutes talking to a (semi)reasonable person in the credit department explaining that what they wanted us to pay per week was more than we could afford to pay and that we could afford to pay the amount we'd said she agreed to it.

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 14:49

It was the number quoted on the letter from Richburns who are bailiffs I think/

They say they have applied to teh courts for warrant which they have and are prepared to use it on monday

OP posts:
flutterbee · 04/08/2006 14:49

Hve you worked out what you can afford to pay Pecka?

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 14:51

I was going to offer them about £75 a month

OP posts:
HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 14:53

was it a Powergen number - or a number for Richburns??

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 14:56

It was a "please contact powergen on 012xxxxxxxx" on the letter from richburns

OP posts:
flutterbee · 04/08/2006 14:59

hhmmmm this is a difficult one as it appears to have gone too far to really stop the installation of the meter, but you could ring powergen dirent and ask to talk to someone about it or explain to the debt company that you will change electric supplier so no debt will be collected through the meter anyway and make sure that they are aware that you will pay £75 a month without the meter.

SpaceCadet · 04/08/2006 14:59

pecka have you contacted energy watch, they may be able to help you.

SpaceCadet · 04/08/2006 15:01

energywatch

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 15:02

is hasn't gone to far - powergen had set a date for installing ours! You can't change energy supplier without paying off what you owe them - we looked at that - and Powergen would still have wanted their money - and it would have been incredibly difficult for us to swap supplier.

Just found the thread I posted about back in February (ok wasn't quite 1hr I said but close)

here

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 15:02

can i change supplier though if i have this outstanding debt with powergen?

im so annoyed with myself for procrastinating for so long but it was just turning into a nightmare and i burrowed my head in the sand

pissed off with myself and im so cloudy on details of what happened originally dont feel i have the bottle to ring up and fight them

OP posts:
HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 15:04

pecka - have a read of the advice I got on that thread i've just linked too - some really useful stuff there.

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 15:05

The date is set QoQ!!!! Monday!!!

off to read the thread

OP posts:
HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 15:06

is that when they're going to fix the meter - they wanted our money 'now' but set a date about 2 weeks later to fit it!

flutterbee · 04/08/2006 15:07

Sorry pecka I presumed that when you said they had a warrent to use on Monday that meant that they were coming on Monday to install the meter by force, or did you mean that they were coming to collect goods for the debt?

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 15:15

He said that on Monday the prepayment meter will be fitted unless I ring back today to pay the full amount.

OP posts:
Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 15:15

and that if we didnt ring back to confirm prepayment meter installation we would be cut off, again, on monday

OP posts:
HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/08/2006 15:17

did they say how much you'd have to pay per week???

misdee · 04/08/2006 15:18

tbh its not that much hass;e having the meter fitted to pay the electric. i did it, and my bill was only £300. what was hassle though was they didnt readjust the meter after the debt was paid off, so for jan-april they owed me £200 hahaha. am now on a normal meter as cant risk running out of electric with peter coming home.

Original poster
pecka · 04/08/2006 15:19

on the PP Meter?

He didnt say. I said is it more expensive. He said, yes a little and they will take "some" for the debt.

OP posts:
misdee · 04/08/2006 15:19

i paid £10 per week, had to buy £20 of tokens on a monday. HTH (the debt came off on a monday)